NLTZ: A Gangrel in the City of Angels
by Shannon K
Summary: A BTVSKTEAtS crossover set in my No Longer the Zeppo universe.  Alex is sent to LA on an errand for Luna, but things don't go as planned.  Read and review please.
1. Chapter 1

NLTZ: A Gangrel in the City of Angels

Disclaimer: I don't own BTVS, Angel, or Kindred the Embraced. If I did, I wouldn't be freaking out over my light bill every month. I promise to return all recognizable characters to their rightful owners when I am done, though they will be a bit scuffed. Any characters you do not readily recognize are of my creation and I can abuse them as I feel fit.

This story takes place after NLTZ: Return to Sunnydale and towards the end of season 2 of Angel, between the episodes of Dead End and Over the Rainbow.

Warning: Potty language, violence, and bad attitudes

* * *

Chapter 1

"You want me to do what?" Alex Harris just about yelped as he stood there in Julian Luna's study, not quite sure that he had heard the Prince correctly.

"I need you to go to Los Angeles and deliver this packet of papers to your old friend, Angel – the Primordial with a soul," Luna repeated himself, calm to the core, enjoying the Gangrel's disbelief.

"Dead Boy and I weren't exactly friends, just so you know. Why do I have to do this?" Alex whined. If he didn't know better, he would have bet money on the idea that the Prince of San Francisco had obviously lost his mind. He needed further explanation as to why madness had suddenly overtaken the Ventrue.

"As you know, I am a bit tired of Cyrus' attempts to disturb the balance of power in the city. There is an opportunity in Los Angeles that will help me return the favor. It comes in the form of the Primordial you know as Angel. His detective agency has recently become a thorn in Cyrus' side and I can't pass it up," Julian reasoned. "He's a small thorn to Cyrus, but it presents us an opportunity that I think will benefit us here in the long run."

"You know, just last month I went to Sunnydale to deal with my past and after that I was hoping that I could put it all behind me. Instead, you want me to go digging it back up in the form of Angel. Thank you very so much," Alex forced himself to choke back the words: _Thanks a whole fucking lot_, worried that that might push Luna past his tolerance levels. He might be pissed that Luna was asking, no, telling him to go look up Angel, but he wasn't feeling suicidal just yet.

"For what it's worth, I am sorry," and for the most part Luna did look sorry. "However, you are the only one of us I can trust to get the papers to Angel and not end up killed on sight by the Primordial."

"What do I tell him about my status among the living population? Surely he's heard of the Kindred before and he will notice that I'm a little different from before."

Luna thought that one over. "I have no problem with you allowing the Primordial to know about yourself and your place within the Masquerade. I am sure the truth will be hard to keep from him. Honesty might get you further with him than deceit."

"What about his associates? What do I tell them? One of whom, might I add, I've known since kindergarten. Another one is an ex-Watcher." Alex asked, looking for clarification.

Luna smiled tightly. "I would appreciate you taking a certain amount of discretion with the humans. I am sure however that we cannot expect the Primordial vampire to keep this secret from them. I would rather they know the truth from you about us and our society, rather than something that is coated with the prejudices of a demonic vampire. Use discretion in what you tell them and make sure they are trust-worthy. Otherwise, wipe their memories or kill them. You know the law."

Alex gulped at that. He knew that Luna's word was the law he had to follow, but the thought of killing someone like Cordy left him feeling cold.

"Your reservations, along with a car have been made in your name. Your flight leaves in a few hours," Luna said a slight smile evident on his face, as he pushed a piece of paper with his flight information on it towards him.

"Oh good, and what happens when everything goes sideways and I don't have access to anything to defend myself?" Alex protested.

"Why would it? Besides, you are a skilled enough fighter and certainly have a few other skills at your disposal that would surely make up for not having a shotgun handy," Luna said. "Just be careful and remember that discretion is the better part of valor. This is a simple task Alex."

At this point, Alex had to mentally throttle himself to prevent a thousand comments that he wanted to make from spewing forth from his mouth, but to say what he really wanted to say would have only served to get him into serious trouble with the Prince. It was all he could do to avoid looking at Cash squarely in the eye. The Gangrel Primogen was clearly having a laugh at his despair and discomfort.

"Fine, but if half of LA goes up in a huge ball of fire, it won't be my fault," Alex ground out as he scooped up the file and stormed out of the room. "Simple my ass," he muttered as he left the room.

Cash waited until Alex was out of hearing range. "You enjoyed that, didn't you?"

"Immensely," was Luna's reply, his dark eyes dancing with laughter. "You had better go calm down your childe before he accidentally sets something on fire. His control isn't always the best."

Cash nodded at his boss and took off after the younger Gangrel. He caught up to him outside the house just as Alex was about to climb into his car.

"Alex, wait up!" Cash yelled.

Alex froze, and then slowly turned around to face the Primogen. "What. Can. I. Do. For. You?" he ground out, trying his damnedest to keep a lid on his temper. His sire was one of his closest friends, not to mention the Primogen of their clan, so he did not want to damage their relationship by being a total dick. But still, the situation he had placed him in sucked big time.

Cash stood there in the bright sunlight, looking at his childe, shaking his head at the younger Gangrel. "I'm sorry we are asking you to do this, but you are the only one who can. If any other Gangrel were to attempt to meet with the Primordial with a soul, they would be killed immediately. You, on the other hand, would be spared."

"Yeah, right. Angel would have no qualms about killing me, Kindred or no," Alex shot back.

"If he were to try it, you are more than capable of defending yourself. Have I not taught you the finer points in fighting dirty?" Cash reasoned with Alex.

"Yes, teach. I am an expert at the drunken asshole-style of fighting," Alex growled, not happy but he knew that he had no choice in the matter. "I'm going as ordered, but I want you to know that officially I am not happy about this. This had better be worth it."

"I'm sure Luna will somehow manage to find a way to compensate you for your pain," Cash laughed at him.

"Thanks. I feel so much better now. Money makes everything so much warmer and fuzzier. Now I have to get going; I have to pack a bag and a plane to catch. Oh yeah, you get to explain this to Emily tonight. She's on campus all day finishing up a research project and in classes, so you get to tell her you sent me to the City of Angels to meet up with the primordial vampire from my human past. Good luck with that." With that, Alex climbed into his car and drove off, flipping his sire the bird and leaving him in the dust. As he tore down the driveway and through the iron gates, he cussed Cash and Luna out something fierce.

* * *

A/N: Well, what do you think? Crap or not? Hit the review button and let me know.

No, I am not neglecting my SG1 story – because of the computer issues I am having, I can't access that story at work, so I have been amusing myself in the meantime with my new NLTZ story.


	2. Chapter 2

NLTZ: A Gangrel in the City of Angels

Disclaimer: I don't own BTVS, Angel, or Kindred the Embraced. If I did, I wouldn't be freaking out over my light bill every month. I promise to return all recognizable characters to their rightful owners when I am done, though they will be a bit scuffed. Any characters you do not readily recognize are of my creation and I can abuse them as I feel fit.

Warning: Potty language, violence, and bad attitudes

* * *

Chapter 2

The flight was short, only an hour and a half and in first class! He had never traveled like this before. The flight attendant, a pretty blonde woman in her late thirties hovered about the people in first class, making sure that they had something to drink and eat. Alex declined the meal, but settled for a coke and several bags of pretzels instead. He thought about looking through the file that Luna had given him, but figured the less he knew about Cyrus the better. Luna was paying him to deliver the information, not give a book report on the contents of the package he had sitting next to him.

Once he was on the ground, he made his way to the car rental place. There he found a black Ford Escape at his disposal. Granted the assignment sucked ass, but if Luna footed the bills like this, he would happily be the Prince's monkey boy for the weekend he decided, but _only_ for the weekend. He had had it with the powered up members of the Slayer's entourage treating him like their retarded red-headed stepchild and he did not want to transfer his owner's papers to anyone, even if the new person was the Prince of San Francisco.

Following the directions the lady behind the counter had given him, he wound his way through the streets of LA, taking in the sights. He figured that he could find a hotel after he had delivered the papers to Angel; he didn't want to waste too much time. The quicker he could complete his task, the quicker he's back home and out of the Brujah-controlled city.

He found the Hyperion Hotel, a structure that had been built during a much more glamorous time period, and had since fallen into a state of decay. He parked outside and took a deep breath, or several, trying to calm himself.

_This is going to be okay. Just walk in, slap the papers down on Angel's desk, and walk the fuck out of there_, he coached himself. _I don't have to explain myself, what's going on with me, or why the hell I'm not human anymore. I will be fine._

_Bull-fucking-shit._

With one last deep breath, he climbed out of the car, grabbed the papers, and slammed the door shut.

Alex went through the gated front and then through the front door which was surprisingly unlocked. One would think, that given the amount of enemies Angel and company had accumulated since he had taken up residency in the city, they would at least lock the door.

"Hello!" he called out, taking in the cavern-like lobby, hearing his voice echo.

"Welcome to Angel Investigations where we help the hopeless," Cordelia called out, sashaying her way from a back office, wearing skin-tight, low-riding jeans and black and silver tank top that left little to the imagination, her hair was streaked with blonde highlights and was cut shorter than he could remember it ever being. She looked good.

"Hey Cordy, is the boss man around?" Alex asked, grinning at his ex-girlfriend.

"Hello salty goodness," Cordelia breathed, not immediately recognizing her former classmate. She stood there, taking in the worn jeans, the faded green Express t-shirt that Larry and Reed insisted he buy during a nightmarish trip to the mall with the two. She couldn't help but admire his general hotness. "Oh my God, Xander!" Cordelia squealed, suddenly recognizing him. "What are you doing here?" Spontaneously, she embraced him in a tight hug, noticing how much cooler his skin felt.

Alex smiled at her. "Hi there Cordelia. I'm here to talk to your boss. Is he around?"

"We _so_ have to catch up," she said and turned around. "Wes! Get out here! Xander's here!"

Wesley Windham-Price came out of a back door, wiping his hands on a hand towel. "Can't you just come and get me without shouting like a lunatic," his voice precise and clipped, though without the prissy attitude he had held back in Sunnydale.

"Quit with the stuffed shirt act," Cordelia admonished the ex-Watcher. "Xander's here!"

"Xander! How nice to see you," the former Watcher greeted the former Sunnydale resident, his hand extended in friendship – a pleasant change from the uptight English-prick act he clung to back in Sunnydale.

"Good to see you too Wesley," Alex said shaking his hand, but frowned. "I really need to see Angel guys. Has something happened to him?"

"Wes is the boss now," Cordelia replied. "Whatever you want to tell Angel, you can tell us, I mean Wes."

Alex looked uncomfortable for a second. "I wish I could, but I have orders that I need to speak to Angel."

"You have orders from Giles?" Cordelia asked confusion on her face.

Alex gave her a tight smile. "I moved away from Sunnydale last year. Giles isn't the reason I'm here. Now, I need to speak to Angel. Is he here or what?"

"What, you can't talk to us?" Cordelia gave him her most winning smile.

"I need to talk to him. Can you get him?" Alex said, remaining tight-lipped.

Cordelia let out a frustrated sigh. "Angel, you get your pale butt out here! Xander's here and wants to talk to you," she yelled, loud enough to wake the dead.

Angel came out an office, coffee mug in hand.

Alex could smell the blood it held; it smelled kind of off, not like the bottled stuff they occasionally got back in San Francisco and definitely not human. _Gross_, he thought to himself.

"What are you shouting about? Oh, Xander! What can," Angel started to say, but broke off, a look of confusion then sheer pissed-off-ness flashed across his face.

_Oh shit_, Alex thought to himself as Angel attacked.

_XanderXanderXander_

The snarling Primordial with a soul, better known as Angel, rushed the young Gangrel, decked out in game face, yellow eyes, fangs, and clawed hands, fully intending to destroy the thing that was wearing Xander's face. While they had been far from friends back in Sunnydale, Angel felt that he owed it to Xander to stop the monster that had overtaken his body.

Alex, for his part, stood there watching the much older Primordial fly across the room, intending to take him out. For a normal person it would have been like standing on train tracks, watching a freight train bare down on him, unable to escape the powerful engine, knowing that death was inevitable.

Luckily, Alex was no longer a normal person. Alex waited until the last possible split second before he simply stood aside and let the vampire rush past him and run right smack into the pillar he had been standing in front of.

The vampire ran right into it so hard the sturdy column shook and creaked. Dust poured down from the ceiling onto Angel, dirtying his pristine black silk shirt.

"Damn, that had to hurt," Alex laughed, smirking at his former nemesis. He couldn't help himself; this was actually kind of amusing to him.

"Fight me monster," Angel snarled, shaking the dust from him.

"I'm not a monster, but if you insist," Alex smiled and assumed a pose he had seen in The Matrix. _Neo eat your heart out_, he thought to himself.

The Primordial and the Gangrel faced off, trading blow for blow. They punched and kicked at each other, neither of them showing that they had been fazed by the brutality the other was delivering upon his opposite.

Their fight took them across the room, moving back and forth, neither one of them giving up or giving in. When Angel would throw an elbow in Alex's face, Alex would reply with a booted foot to Angel's knee. While Angel was older and a far more experienced fighter, Alex made up for it with enthusiasm, sneakiness, and determination.

Finally, when Angel had slammed Alex into a wall hard enough to leave an imprint a blast roared through the room and an overly large hole exploded in the wall by their heads.

"Will you two knock it off and tell me what the hell is going on?" Wesley shouted, holding a shot gun in his hands.

There was an African-American man standing near Wesley, looking a bit confused.

"Christ Wes! You could have taken my head off!" Alex yelled.

"You blew a hole in the wall! I am not fixing that!" Angel also yelled his fight with Alex momentarily forgotten.

Wesley was pissed and was not about to be thwarted by their childish protests. "No, you two are going to explain a few things. Why did you," he looked at Angel, "attack Xander here? And you," he then turned on the young man that still had his back to the wall, held a few inches off the floor in Angel's grip, "will explain how you were able to move like that."

"He's not human," Angel snarled, his hand around Alex's throat tightening.

"No shit," Alex ground out, finally tired of playing with the Primordial. "Solvo mihi," he growled, his eyes momentarily flashing golden for a second.

Angel felt as if his fingers were being bent backwards in excruciating angles and an invisible shield had been slammed into him, throwing him backwards. He flew through the air and hit the support column that he had hit previously, this time cracking it.

Alex slid to the ground with a thump, a malevolent grin on his face, enjoying the surprised expression plastered across Dead Boy's face as he soared through the air. "I am not a monster though," he snapped.

"Will you two cut this crap out?" Wes hollered his eyes narrowed looking at the two with ill-concealed displeasure. "I was hoping to go home early tonight. I planned on having a quiet night with a nice bottle of scotch and BBC America, but no. There's a Ballykissangel marathon on, it's calling my name, and I am missing it because of you two. What in the hell are you two about?"

Angel looked up from the floor. "The marathon is on tonight? I thought it was on tomorrow! I love that show," he said, looking confused.

Wesley rolled his eyes. "The only reason you like the show is because your name is in it," he said, a deriding tone to his words.

"Please," Angel threw back, glaring at the human. "I am not that shallow. The show captures the Irish spirit."

"Like you know anything about the Irish spirit, you're an Ulster-Scot, not Catholic and not a drop of actual Irish DNA ever ran through your veins."

"Oh and you are the expert on the Irish? You're British. Your people decimated a country and plotted to methodically eradicate an entire race to further your greed and lust for land," Angel said, getting to his feet and really warming to the subject.

"Which your people greatly benefited from, might I add. Your family came from the Scottish Lowlands once you finished denuding your old land with your poor farming techniques. Your family immigrated to Ulster, grabbing a place in society and benefiting from the wealth of a nation stolen from its rightful owners based solely on the idea that you were Protestants, therefore you were in the right. While you might have been born in Ireland, had an Irish accent, and given an Irish name, and love the jewelry of the Celtic people, you weren't Irish," Wesley threw back at Angel. "You were a privileged member of a society that was built on the sweat and tears of the true Irish."

Angel and Wesley continued to throw barbs back and forth, each challenging the other's knowledge and understanding of what makes one Irish.

Alex, by this time, had picked himself up off the floor and joined Cordelia and Gunn over at the front desk. "Do they do this often?" he asked his ex-girlfriend. "They sound like bitchy women at an Irish Fest."

Both Gunn and Cordelia rolled their eyes.

"You should have been here when Riverdance came to town," Cordelia said, exasperated with her boss and former boss. "I thought I'd have to stake them both to get them to _shut up_," the last words she hollered at the two of them. "God you're annoying!"

After that, she turned from the two shrews and looked at the first boy she actually ever cared about. "So Xander, you want to give with the four-one-one why you were able to go head to head with our Fanged Care Bear?"

"I am not a Care Bear and I really wish you would find a new expression that did not refer to me as a member of that demonic Eighties cartoon and expression in bad taste," Angel glared at the woman.

"Whatever," Cordelia said. "What's up with the moves and the mojo, cause last time we talked you were plain old Zeppo Xander."

"He's not human," Angel supplied; his argument with Wesley forgotten.

"I think that was pretty evident when he went head-to-head with you, not to mention the invisible dim mak," Gunn said, sounding amused.

"He's Kindred," Angel further explained.

Cordelia looked at him with exasperation. "That still doesn't explain much Angel."

Alex groaned. "Thanks a lot Dead Boy. Way to put my balls in a vice."

"Kindred are vampires," Angel apparently could not shut up with the further explanations. "And don't call me Dead Boy."

"I will call you whatever the fuck I feel like now since you had to drop that bomb. You know, I was sent here for a simple delivery run as a favor for someone back home. Come down to LA, meet with you Angel, have a quiet chit-chat, and go home. Thanks a whole fucking lot for complicating everything. I swear what I'm getting paid for this job is _not_ worth it."

"Xander Harris a vampire? Please," Cordelia said, not believing a word that Angel was saying, rolling her eyes. "Xander hates vampires, hell he hates you half the time. Why would he become a vampire like you?"

"My kind is nothing like Mr. Hair Gel, thank you very much," Alex shot back, unable to stop him-self.

Cordelia, Gunn, and Wesley all turned to look at Xander with disbelief. The next second Alex found him-self looking at the business ends of a cross-bow, a stake, and a shotgun.

"Vindico," Alex said and mimicked pulling the weapons free of their hands. With that, Cordelia, Gunn, and Wes lost their grips and watched their weapons sail over Alex's head, except for the shotgun. Alex plucked the firearm from the air and turned it on them, working the action, making sure a shell was in the chamber, and settling the weapon into the pocket of his shoulder.

"Do not do that again," he said coldly, his eyes glowing eerily. "Now that the big secret that was supposed to stay secret is out, how about we sit down and have a nice chat before we decide to make this into a very messy situation," Alex said, looking hard.

Angel made a microscopic start towards the Gangrel, but was stilled by a sub-vocal growl that he felt more than heard emanate from the former Sunnydale resident.

"Can we please sit down and have us an adult conversation? I would rather have this not turn into a scene from the Texas Chainsaw Massacre," Alex asked, his voice more of a growl than anything else.

"Fine," Angel said, glaring, "but you had better make with the truth or I'll find out what Kindred blood tastes like."

"Empty threat Dead Boy," Alex muttered, but followed the Primordial with a soul into the back office, followed by Cordelia, Wes, and Gunn.

* * *

A/N: Well, what do you think? Crap or not? Hit the shiny review button and let me know. Please

The stuff about Ulster-Scots came from a website (I don't know which one - I can't find my notebook right now) but it discussed the immigration of Scots into Ireland, who adopted the culture of the Irish, but didn't have to endure the hardships that were placed on the Irish by the British Empire. I never bought the idea that Angel/Liam was truly Irish since he apparently came from a privileged, land-owning family and less than 7 of the Irish actually owned land at the time he was supposed to have been bitten by Darla. Don't read too much into it; it served as a tool for me to get Wes and Angel being snippy towards each other and served to amuse me.


	3. Chapter 3

NLTZ: A Gangrel in the City of Angels

Disclaimer: I don't own BTVS, Angel, or Kindred the Embraced. If I did, I wouldn't be freaking out over my light bill every month. I promise to return all recognizable characters to their rightful owners when I am done, though they will be a bit scuffed. Any characters you do not readily recognize are of my creation and I can abuse them as I feel fit.

Warning: Potty language, violence, and bad attitudes

* * *

Chapter 3

"I can't believe you did that," Cordelia shook her head in near disbelief. "I mean, couldn't you have gotten your hair cut differently or switched to a new brand of soap or something a little less drastic than becoming a member of the undead? What did the gang back in Sunnydale say when you dropped this bomb on them? I bet Buffy was pissed."

Alex gave her a pained smile. "They don't know and they can't know about this. Buffy would never understand that we aren't all like Angel's soulless brethren. She was made to stop anything that doesn't fall into the category of human. She's a Slayer, it's what she does. We police ourselves and keep to the shadows. We don't like attention from humans - much less girls that were called to destroy things that go bump in the night."

"Why haven't the Watchers heard of your kind before? I don't remember hearing about these Kindred vampires in the Academy," Wesley mussed; a distant, yet thoughtful look on his face.

"Like I said earlier, we don't like the term vampire used in reference to us. Supposedly the people in charge of the Masquerade made sure that all evidence of the Kindred's existence was destroyed sometime around the Burning Times. However, a few documents and books apparently still exist but most of it is chalked up to folklore and as nothing more than urban legends at this point," Alex explained, sitting back in his wooden slatted chair. Suddenly his cell phone rang.

He checked the LED display and saw that it was Emily calling.

Alex held up a finger to pause the conversation. "Hey Em, what's up?"

Pause.

"Nope, the boss man sent me at the last minute. I didn't want to interrupt your classes and I know how important your project is to you."

Pause.

Alex smiled slightly. "I was going to call you later tonight. I should be back late tomorrow night. Everything is fine."

Longer pause.

"I love you too and I will see you soon. Have fun," Alex said and snapped the phone closed.

The others looked at him expectantly.

"My girlfriend," he said but wouldn't elaborate. He didn't want to give out too much information about his personal life, least it be used against him at some point. Letting the LA gang know about the Masquerade was one thing, letting them know about Emily was a completely other subject.

"You have a girlfriend? Last I heard you were dating Anya. What happened to that?" Cordelia pressed, leaning forward in her chair, an intensely curious look on her face.

Alex grimaced at that. "It didn't work out. It never would have really. I met Emily instead and now I am with her."

"Is she okay with you being all fang-like and being living-challenged?" Cordelia pressed.

He barely repressed a snort of laughter. "She's fine with it and is all with the understanding."

Wes looked slightly floored with the revelations that Xander had dumped in their laps, gob-smacked if you will. "As interesting as it is to see you again Xander, why are you here. I can't imagine that you came to LA to just look us up. You said that you had some information for us."

Alex took a deep breath. "I do, but I need to know that you all understand that the stuff about Kindred cannot be shared with anyone, especially those from Sunnydale. My kind values secrecy and our ability to stay hidden among humans. They won't tolerate having centuries of secrets being unleashed by people with big mouths."

"And if we don't keep things on the q-t?" Gunn asked looking defiant.

"Then I either wipe your memory clean of this conversation or kill you," Alex said, his voice dead of any emotion.

"Over my un-breathing body," Angel snarled, half rising from his chair.

Alex however refused to let himself be intimidated or outwardly affected by the Primordial with a soul. "Don't tempt me Dead Boy. There are rules that have to be followed. Now can I trust the three of you, and I guess you too Angel, to keep the information about my kind to yourselves, especially with the Sunnydale crowd?" He looked at each of them hard, carefully listening to their heartbeats (well, not Angel's obviously), using that as a gauge to determine if they were trust worthy or not.

The beating of their hearts remained steady as each of them affirmed that they would keep the info to themselves.

"Good, I'd hate to have to kill all of you. It would be a major downer and something is telling me that you guys are needed here," Alex relaxed a bit, settling back into his chair.

"You would really kill us?" Cordelia asked. "I can understand why you would want to kill the guys, but me? We dated in high school, doesn't that mean anything?"

Alex laughed at that. "How could I forget?"

"You use to date Cordelia? No wonder you went out and made yourself into a vampire," Gunn muttered.

Cordelia glared at the man sitting next to her, looking scandalized and offended.

"We prefer the term Kindred. It's one of many things that keep us separated from the likes of Angel's kind."

Angel let out a snort of indignation. "I can't believe that you of all people willingly joined up with the Kindred. You hated vampires when you were in high school, you hated me most of all and you went and joined them. Maybe they aren't exactly like me, but they're still a bunch of undead blood suckers no matter what they call themselves."

The Gangrel only smiled brightly at the Primordial. "We all do wacky things for love don't we Angel? I am sure you can relate to that. Also, don't forget I got to keep my soul in the process, not to mention the ability to access some pretty cool powers."

"Speaking of which," Wesley piped up, cleaning his glasses on the tail of his button-down blue shirt, "last time I remember we spoke, you didn't have any sort of magical abilities. Was this something that came with your new lifestyle?"

Alex shrugged. "No. Apparently my ability to do magic had always been there, but the effects of the Hellmouth blocked it. Once I got away from Sunnydale and got the Hellmouth burnt out of me, I was able to tap into those dormant abilities."

"So what else can you do besides move things around and kick the crap out of Angel? Do you have a broomstick and an owl like Harry Potter?" Cordelia asked, her brown eyes snapping with excitement.

Alex froze there for a second, his facial features caught in a moment of utter surprise and disgust. "I can't believe that you went there. That was so low Cordelia. I can't go anywhere without hearing about Harry-fucking-Potter. Thank you _so_ much J.K. Rowling," he bitched to everyone in general.

"Well?" Cordelia pressed, her arms crossed across her chest.

"I can do a few things. It's been barely a year since I was embraced. I still have a lot to learn, but I found out that I like to set things on fire," with the last bit, a twisted smile flitted across his face, but was quickly schooled over.

"Um, wow," Cordelia said, taken aback.

"Okay, now that we've had the reunion, why are you here?" Angel pressed, slightly disturbed by the changes in Xander Harris.

"I was sent to give you this," Alex said and tossed the file on to the desk that had been previously leaning against the chair he was sitting in. "The Kindred in this city are run by a guy by the name of Cyrus. He's a Brujah – Kindred like me but of a different clan. The prince of San Francisco wanted to warn you that while Cyrus considers you guys to be nothing more than a mild nuisance that could always change. The Prince of San Francisco doesn't mind that you guys disrupt Cyrus' plans because it hampers his ability to cause problems up north. While Luna can't openly go against another prince, he won't stop you guys from messing up some of Cyrus's schemes if you come across any. He also wanted to give you guys fair warning about the dangers of messing with Kindred. We're all around you, so tread lightly. The file contains some information about Cyrus and his businesses. If I were you, I'd read it, memorize what you can, then destroy it. It won't do you guys any good if the wrong people find out you have intimate knowledge about a member of the Masquerade."

Angel snapped up the file and began to leaf through it. "How do we know you aren't setting us up? You could be helping this Cyrus guy," he asked.

Alex snarled, his eyes briefly glowing in anger. "I am Gangrel. My clan hates the Brujah and it would be a cold day in hell before I would help one of them, especially a Brujah prince, beyond my duty to protect the Masquerade."

"What now?" Gunn asked.

Alex shrugged. "You guys keep doing whatever it is you do to help the hopeless and I get to go back to San Francisco to my job, buddies, girlfriend, and live out my happy existence."

"You have a job?" Cordelia asked, surprised.

"I work construction. What you think I earn my living by knocking over 7-11s, stealing wallets and purses from people at the bus station?" Alex rolled his eyes. "Anyway, have a good life guys. I'll catch you all later and don't forget to destroy that file.

He stood up and started to leave. Cordelia also stood up, preparing to walk her old friend, who was now apparently a vampire, even though he refused to call himself that for some unknown reason.

Unfortunately, Cordelia never got the chance to do so. Instead she screamed in pain, as a vision from the Powers that Be filled her mind.

* * *

A/N: Well, what do you think? Crap or not? Hit the shiny review button and let me know what you think. 


	4. Chapter 4

NLTZ: A Gangrel in the City of Angels

Disclaimer: I don't own BTVS, Angel, or Kindred the Embraced. If I did, I wouldn't be freaking out over my light bill every month. I promise to return all recognizable characters to their rightful owners when I am done, though they will be a bit scuffed. Any characters you do not readily recognize are of my creation and I can abuse them as I feel fit.

Warning: Potty language, violence, and bad attitudes

* * *

Chapter 4

"Holy crap! What the hell is wrong with Cordelia?" Alex exclaimed, watching his ex-girlfriend writhe on the floor.

The former brunette beauty was on the floor, holding her head as the Powers that Be flooded her mind with horrific visions of what was taking place elsewhere. It was the pain that wracked her brain caused her to scream out, not necessarily the actual visions. The gang knew that having the visions was a painful experience, but they didn't know how bad it was. They didn't know about the blinding migraines that followed the revelations from upon high. They didn't know about the plastic tote that she kept hidden under her bed that was filled with several types of migraine medications: Topamax, Imitrax, Midrin, Relpax, and Toradol.

"Several men, in a warehouse, wearing brown robes," Cordelia ground out. "They're calling a demon in Anaheim. They have two people, guys, chained to an altar. They are going to sacrifice them."

"Somehow that seems kind of appropriate," Angel said thinking it over.

"Do you know where?" Wesley asked, kneeling beside the young woman.

"It's on North Armando, 1120," Cordelia said, doing her best to figure out where the Powers wanted them to go.

"I'll go look it up on MapQuest," Gunn volunteered and ran out the door to Cordelia's office was located. She had the site bookmarked on her computer for just such an occasion.

Soon the vision faded and Cordelia was able to sit up with the help of Angel and Wesley.

"Got it!" Gunn announced, holding up a printed out map. It's just off East La Palma Avenue, not far from where we killed that Hoecker demon a couple of months ago."

"Cordelia, do you know what kind of demon we will find there?" Wesley asked.

"It was brown and lumpy," she said, holding her head. "It smelled bad too, like it had crawled out of a port-a-potty on a hot August day."

"Lovely," Angel said, a look of disgust on his face, but proceeded to arm himself with his favorite axe, readying himself to face the nameless brown and lumpy demon.

At this Alex cleared his throat. He really didn't want to get caught up in whatever they were going to do. "Anaheim. Ironic that it would be the center of some unspeakable evil," Alex shrugged. "I guess I will leave you guys to it. Best of luck and all that," he said and started to back out of the room.

"No Xander! You can't go. I saw you there! You need to be there," Cordelia said, looking at her ex-boyfriend with pleading eyes. "The Powers want you there."

Alex stared at her, taking in her disheveled appearance, noting the desperate look in her eyes. "Do I have to?" he whined.

"Really, does Fang Boy have to come?" Angel asked smirking at the Gangrel, enjoying that he was finally able to get his back after having to put up with Xander calling him Dead Boy for several years.

"Oh! Fang Boy is _so_ clever. Did you think of that one all by yourself? You wound me with your witty jibes" Alex shot back at the soul-carrying Primordial, smiling nastily at him.

Angel would have retorted with something just as droll, but he was interrupted by Cordelia.

"Yes, the vision was murky, but it was clear that you were necessary. Please Xander," Cordelia pleaded with the ex-Sunnydale resident.

"Fine, but I am not going in there unarmed. How are you guys for weapons?" Alex said, blowing out a breath of frustrations.

"Axes, swords, machetes, and crossbows are all in the weapons' cabinet," Wesley offered, looking over his crossbow with a practiced eye.

"You're kidding right? What about some firepower? How about the shotgun you used to almost blow my head off earlier? Please tell me that walking into a fight barely armed was just Buffy's shtick," Alex gaped at the members of Angel Investigations.

Angel tossed a machete towards Alex who caught it beautifully. "You get this. Guns only go to those that I trust with them. How do I know you won't accidently blow your hand off with one or worse, shoot me by mistake?"

"Who says it would be a mistake," Alex snarked, rolling his eyes. "I mean seriously, don't you guys want to have something to back you up besides a big knife?"

"We'll be fine. Of course if you are too scared to come along, you don't have to," the Primordial grinned at the Gangrel. "Or are Kindred as full of crap as I think they are?"

Alex gave Angel a wicked grin. "Let's go Dead Boy. At the very least, it should be entertaining."

_XanderXanderXander_

They drove over Anaheim, all of them piled into Angel's convertible, which was roomy enough to hold the three humans, two vampires, and a partridge in a pear tree.

Gunn did the navigating, directing them towards a rundown brick building on the outskirts of the city, though not too far from the ultimate symbol of consumerism.

They got out of the car, careful not to make too much noise and crept closer to the building, hoping to get close enough they could figure out what was going on inside without letting the occupants know that they were there.

Unfortunately, as they all got within three feet of the brick edifice, a blue-white light flared outwards, knocking all five of them flat on their backs, stunned and unconscious.

* * *

A/N: Well, what do you think? Crap or not? Hit the shiny review button and let me know. 


	5. Chapter 5

NLTZ: A Gangrel in the City of Angels

Disclaimer: I don't own BTVS, Angel, or Kindred the Embraced. If I did, I wouldn't be freaking out over my light bill every month. I promise to return all recognizable characters to their rightful owners when I am done, though they will be a bit scuffed. Any characters you do not readily recognize are of my creation and I can abuse them as I feel fit.

Warning: Potty language, violence, and bad attitudes

I dedicate this chapter to Evilsonofa and Lorilei. Ha!

* * *

Chapter 5

"Welcome back," a voice called out as Alex struggled to claw his way back to consciousness.

"What the hell was that?" Alex ground out, forcing himself to open his eyes, despite the fact that there was an evil troll pounding on his eyelids with a red hot hammer and kicking him in the head with steel-toed boots.

"You aren't going to believe this one," a familiar voice drawled.

"Angel," Alex said, looking over at the Primordial. "Why in the hell are we chained to an altar?" he asked after he took in his surrounding and situation. "Also, why is my shirt missing and why am I covered in, what the hell is this stuff?" he asked, looking at the yellow goop that was covering his bare chest and arms. "Is this some weird gay S&M club? Just because I live in San Francisco, that doesn't mean I'm into that kind of lifestyle. Not everyone is like that there."

"Our patron saint prefers his offerings to go down smoothly. Plus he says that Vaseline tastes good," a man said completely straight-faced. He was wearing brown robes and held a large leather bound book. He spoke with a English accent.

"Go down smoothly?" Angel asked, confusion on his face and he tugged futilely at the chains that kept him and Xander strapped to the stone slab table that they were lying across.

"Yes, we will be sacrificing the two of you to Gaap as an offering that he will grant his favor upon us," the head Jawa replied.

"We're going to be sacrificed to a chain store that sells clothing made in sweat shops by five year old children?" Alex asked confusion clearly displayed across his face. "Oh by the way, did ya see this one coming Cordy or were you saving that for a dramatic bombshell at the right moment?" he roared, seeing his old friend off to the side, tied up besides the ex-Watcher and Angel's sidekick, Gunn.

"This is so not my fault! You can't blame me for the fact that the Powers that Be went all vague. All I knew was that you being here was important," she yelled back, annoyed that she was getting blamed for this. It wasn't like she planned on things going south.

"Important in the way a turkey is important to a Thanksgiving dinner! I'm half naked, covered in Vaseline, and chained to an altar next to Dead Boy, about to be sacrificed to some demon that shares a name with a clothing store," Alex hollered back. He was what one could call pissed.

"What are we being sacrificed for?" Angel asked, straining to get a look at their captor.

Several other people in identical brown robes moved closer to the altar, circling the table. In all, there were at least five humans holding either a book or lethal looking wooden knives.

The head man laughed slightly, amused somehow. "We need to ensure that we win this match. Granted we are playing against the LA Galaxy in just an exhibition match, but if we lose, we will lose face with the other teams back home. Also, we would like to guarantee that we win the Premiership this year."

"What are you going on about? What match?"

The head man huffed impatiently. "The match tomorrow between LA and Liverpool you ignorant American!"

"I'm Irish thank you," Angel shot back, ignoring Wesley's snort of derision.

"You're trying to fix a soccer game?" Alex asked incredulously.

"Its football you stupid American," one of the acolytes chimed in with his two cents. "Like you could even begin to appreciate the Beautiful Game," he said with scorn in his voice.

"They're hooligans," Wesley said softly, his voice reflecting the disbelief in his head. "Why can't you just break out the lead pipes like any other hooligan and stay away from the black magic?"

The first man rolled his eyes. "Please. How do you think Chelsea got to where they are? Talent and hard work alone? Hardly. Don't tell me, you're a Man U supporter, aren't you?"

"At least my boys don't need black magic to ensure success," Wesley snipped.

At this point, there was a lot of yelling and team bashing going on between the Jawa look-a-likes and Wesley that no one, except for them, could follow.

"So what do we do?" Alex looked over at Angel. "I don't know about you, but I don't want to get myself sacrificed to appease some god over soccer. I enjoy soccer, but I don't want to end up as a sacrifice, much less become a sacrifice for a team I could care less about. I have a girlfriend to go home to, not to mention there is going to be a killer party coming up that I really don't want to miss," Alex said, sighing deeply.

"It's football you brain dead idiot," a nameless follower yelled out.

"You know, this isn't about you and what you want," Angel snapped.

"You're right Angel. How selfish can I be? Here I am, thinking about myself when I am about to be sacrificed by a bunch of soccer hooligans. Shame on me for that," Alex snapped back, irritated.

"Football!" the person screamed at them.

"Shut up!" the vampires yelled back, irritated that their conversation was being interrupted.

"You would have never spoken to me like that when you were human. Guess when you became Kindred, you finally grew a pair of balls," Angel threw back at the former Sunnydale resident.

Alex rolled his eyes. "Yeah that's it exactly. I only willingly faced down how many demons, vampires, the occasional generic bad guy, and everyone's favorite snuggle bunny by the name of Angeleus because I was gutless. Shall we recap on who was the sniveling coward when he first came to Sunnydale? Oh wait, I remember who it was! It was you Dead Boy, Mister I'm Too Scared to Face the Master, so I allowed a sixteen year old girl to go down there to the Master's super secret clubhouse alone and die as a result. Fuck you asshole."

"Oh yeah, I'm the big coward. You ran from Sunnydale with your tail between your legs and hooked with the elite fang club and got yourself a power-up because you were too scared to face life knowing that no matter what, you were weak and helpless among the more super-powered champions," Angel snarled back.

"How would you fucking know? You ran off to LA after graduation, not that I really minded, but still. You missed all of the crap I had to put up with. I got a better offer, with a chance at real happiness and you begrudge me that? Oh wait, I forgot again, you don't get to have true happiness and this is just your green monster talking here. Kiss my ass."

They were suddenly interrupted by the sound of someone clearing their throat, disturbing the private argument between Alex and Angel.

"If you don't mind, can we get on with this?" the head man asked, looking impatient.

"Oh I'm sorry. Are we disrupting your plans on sacrificing us? How rude," Angel snapped.

"Yes you are," the human said, sounding peckish. "Now if you don't mind, we have a sacrifice to start."

"I mind," Alex blurted out.

"What about the others?" Angel asked, looking over at Cordelia, Wesley, and Gunn.

"They'll be appetizers for Gaap," the acolyte replied.

At hearing that, Angel snarled at the human and continued to struggle against the chains that held him bound to the altar.

The Liverpool fans only smiled at his futile attempts to escape.

The head guy opened up his book and began to read out-loud. "Rise up o Lord and prevent Brazil from dominating over us. Spread terror over them, Lord. Rise up and extend Your hand to suppress the force of Carlos Ruiz and Cobi Jones," he began. "Plunge Ruiz and Jones into confusion and, Almighty Lord, if this does not work either, at least grant us a goal in the last minute, even if from an offside position. Help us, Lord, reach our final goal of the Championship, even if it will be held on a Sunday and no one will go to church! Make their goalposts look like an airport runway and their goalkeeper small like an ant."

As he spoke, a rumbling noise began, emanating somewhere from behind the altar. Alex and Angel shared a look a panic and both of them, increased their efforts, desperately doing their best to break the chains.

"Can't you do your magic thing and break the chains that way?" Angel panted.

Alex shook his head. "Something is blocking me. The chains probably have some sort of anti-magic spell cast on them."

By twisting and violently struggling, the Primordial and Gangrel were able to each free an arm from being pinned down by the chains. Each of them gripped the chain and pulled with all of their mighty, inhuman strength. The metal groaned as they yanked, straining to free themselves. With a metallic shriek, a link snapped in two, metal pieces flying everywhere.

They kicked themselves free of the bonds than had held them down on the altar. Angel and Alex, vampires separated by origins, clans, and demonic possession rolled off the structure and lashed out at the humans, doing their best to stop the sacrifice, willing to fight tooth and nail to save their friends and themselves.

Despite their efforts, despite knocking down the hooligans and their leader, a putrid smell filled the room. The rumbling they had felt earlier had switched to an earth-shattering shake. Pieces of the building fell down all around them; fragments of brick, sheetrock, and wood rained down on everyone, some of the larger pieces landed dangerously close to their human friends.

Alex and Angel turned slowly around to look at the altar, dreading what they would find.

"Oh crap," Angel said in disbelief.

"Literally," Alex added his voice thick with incredulity.

* * *

A/N: Well, what do you think? Crap or not? Hit the shiny review button and let me know.

I got the "prayer' from something I found on a site (which one I can't remember) concerning Liverpool. According to the site, it was originally broadcast on the BBC and done by Liverpool supporters I think in June of 2002 against Barcelona. I just thought it was funny. I changed it a bit to fit the Galaxy's line up back in 2002. I got the idea of somehow incorporating hooligans into my NLTZ universe a while back from reading a review by Evilsonofa concerning my "issues" (I am a Man U and Tottenham-Hotspurs fan), watching the ass-kicking that Galaxy got from Chelsea, and my general love of the Beautiful Game. I did a lot of debating which team and supporters I was going to rag on, but finally Liverpool was decided upon. I know that Liverpool hasn't played against an MLS team, but just accept it anyways. Finally, yes Lorilei, the dig at Ruiz was for you. Haha!


	6. Chapter 6

Disclaimer: I don't own BTVS, Angel, or Kindred the Embraced. If I did, I wouldn't be freaking out over my light bill every month. I promise to return all recognizable characters to their rightful owners when I am done, though they will be a bit scuffed. Any characters you do not readily recognize are of my creation and I can abuse them as I feel fit.

Warning: Potty language, violence, and bad attitudes

* * *

Chapter 6

"It's a Psheyt demon," Wesley whispered, doing his best to not breathe too deeply. The smell was thick enough to choke a donkey.

"A shit demon?" Alex asked, not daring to take his eyes off the brown lumpy mess that had a pair of beady eyes and drippy brown arms. Occasionally a lump of crap would roll down its body and squish onto the floor, sounding wet and runny.

"No," Wesley said, exasperation evident in his voice. "A Psheyt demon, different spelling, but yes, it looks like a big pile of moving crap."

Upon hearing his words and hearing the sickening squish of shit-like material hitting the floor, Gunn, Cordelia, Alex, and Angel all gagged.

"What now?" Alex looked at Angel, his eyes wide in disbelief and shock. It wasn't every day one saw a shit demon.

Angel scooped up a discarded ornamental knife and threw it expertly end over end at the demon. It struck its target perfectly, square between its black eyes.

Unfortunately the knife sunk into the crap-for-flesh and disappeared. The demon was none the worse for the effort. If the situation hadn't been so serious, Alex would have laughed at the look of utter dismay on Angel's face.

"What does it do besides stink?" Alex called over his shoulder, never taking his eyes off the shifting mass of poop.

Suddenly, a lightning bolt lanced out of the mountain of feces and blew a hole in the wall near Cordelia. Another one struck near Angel's feet, blowing him off his feet and backwards.

"Something kind of like that," the former Watcher replied nervously. "It'll fry you from the inside out and eat your greasy remains. I guess the Vaseline is its ketchup."

"What'll kill it?" the Gangrel yelled.

"Fire," Wesley retorted, "a really big fire. Do you have enough matches on your person or at least a flame thrower? Otherwise, we are screwed."

"Gosh Wes, you sound more and more American with each passing second. And yes I have a really big flame thrower. Is Angel still with us?" Alex snapped, doing his best to shout over the din that the demon was causing, the whip-cracking of lightening striking all around him, getting closer and closer to him. Several lightning bolts had already hit some of the hell-raisers, killing them instantly, causing the room to not only smell like a massively dirty diaper that hadn't been changed in years, but also burnt hair and fried human skin

"Yeah," Angel groaned and picked him-self off the floor, not far from where his human friends sat.

"Get them out. All of them," he told the Primordial vampire and readied himself. "I don't know if I'll be able to control it."

"Control what?" Angel yelled at him, as he made quick work of the bonds that held the others in place. Also, ever the hero, concerned about human life, grabbed two of the humans that had tried mere minutes in the past attempted to sacrifice him to the slimy and smelly demon that crawled out of a cesspit.

"A flame thrower," Alex shouted back, and then promptly ignored him, trusting the Primordial to take care of things. He then began to draw on the power of Mother Earth, connecting himself to the source of his power, letting its energies to flow through him. Mentally he touched the power, shaping it, bending it to his will, conjuring up the idea of fire, lots and lots of fire.

He worried momentarily that he wouldn't be able to control it, that the fire would get out of control. He hadn't done anything this big without Daedelus being there, watching and guiding him along. Alex could only give a silent prayer to whom-ever was actually listening that he wouldn't actually burn down the city and kill himself in the process.

He let the potential energy build up inside of him, doubling and redoubling in strength, knowing that he needed every ounce of power behind this one-shot at destroying the demon.

Alex's eyes glowed, changing from their normal deep brown to warm amber, but as the power built up his eyes flickered briefly to an ominous crimson before being snuffed out and they went back to their normal Kindred yellow.

When it got to the point where he knew that he couldn't hold it back any longer, once the others had made their way out of the building, he let loose. The energies he had stored, he let them go, funneling the strength of his mind and will, forcing the raw power to take on the shape of fire.

Alex channeled the power through his hands and a brilliance of volcano proportions erupted, though it never touched his skin. It shot forth, seeking the demon, chasing the methane emissions coming from the creature. Blue and white flames raced along the red and orange blaze, sucking up precious oxygen, adding to the fuel behind the fire.

The fire reached the demon, who unfortunately for it, was to bulbous in its girth to allow it to escape – think a pile of shit the size of Jabba the Hut. Instantly the fire licked at the beast, setting it ablaze. Its surface went up like a dried out Christmas tree soaked in gasoline.

Unfortunately for Alex, what he didn't count on was the gasses exploding as the demon died a shrieking, smelly, and exploding death. The gas in the room detonated, along with the gloppy remains of the demon, throwing Alex through a boarded up broken window and out into the alley where he landed at Angel's feet, his pants smoking.

Cordelia and Gunn thankfully had enough sense to grab the Gangrel and roll him, snuffing out the smoldering clothing.

"Back off," Alex yelled once his pants were out, knowing instinctively that the last thing he needed was a couple of humans within striking distance of him at that moment. There was a distant part of his mind that prayed he hadn't gotten bits of the exploding shit-demon on him. That would have been massively wrong and gross.

"What's wrong?" Cordelia asked and took a step towards her ex-boyfriend.

"Get back Cordy," Alex ordered, his eyes glowing and his razor sharp fangs showing. "I'm hungry and you smell snackable."

* * *

A/N: Well, what do you think? Crap or not (well, there was a lot of crap in this chapter – haha)? Hit the shiny review button and let me know what you think. 


	7. Chapter 7

Disclaimer: I don't own BTVS, Angel, or Kindred the Embraced. If I did, I wouldn't be freaking out over my light bill every month. I promise to return all recognizable characters to their rightful owners when I am done, though they will be a bit scuffed. Any characters you do not readily recognize are of my creation and I can abuse them as I feel fit.

Warning: Potty language, violence, and bad attitudes

* * *

Chapter 7

Angel grabbed Cordelia and yanked her behind him. "Back off Xander!" he warned the Gangrel.

"I'm hungry," he stated, his eyes shifting predator-like from Cordelia to Gunn. He wondered if he could get to one of them before the Primordial would get in his way, not that he was too worried about that happening.

"You can't have them," Angel said, allowing his face to morph from human to demonic, readying him-self for a fight.

"Would you end up killing the human? If you fed off them I mean," Cordelia asked suddenly.

"You are not offering yourself Cordelia," Angel barked at her.

"Duh," she said, rolling her eyes. "Like I'm really going to allow myself to be turned into a human juice box. What about the hooligans?" she asked, jerking her thumb over at the two they managed to pull out of the building before Xander blew the poop demon up; the others didn't make it.

Wesley was standing over them, holding a nine mil that he had retrieved from the car. In hindsight, he was mentally kicking himself for leaving it in the car at the beginning of their deplorable night, not that it would have made a big difference against a bunch of lame magic-wielding hooligans and a demonic pile of shit. Despite that, Wes could understand Xander's earlier comment about going into a situation underprepared and lacking serious fire power.

"I know they aren't choir boys, and we shouldn't sacrifice them despite their status as the ass-jerks of the century. But if he doesn't kill them, then I don't see the problem," she said, being pragmatic about it. While she didn't totally understand what had driven Xander into voluntarily allowing himself to turn into a vampire, he was still her friend, but didn't want to see him kill someone. However, he did help save their lives from her completely screwed up vision interpretation and now he needed help. It wasn't right to deny the guy that had saved their butts from the lightening-throwing lump of crap a chance to save himself.

A small, but wicked grin crept across Alex's face. "No. I don't have to kill when I feed. It would serve them right if I did kill them though."

Angel looked briefly at the others who only shrugged. "Fine," he said, letting his features return to their human guise. "Don't kill them or else," he growled at the Gangrel. "You might have saved our lives tonight, but that doesn't mean I'll let you kill people."

Alex snorted in derision of Angel's threats to end his undead life. "Unless you want to watch, you might want to take a walk," he said and quickly strode over to the two humans on the ground.

Cordelia made an ick-like noise and quickly excused herself from the alleyway. The others followed suit. Angel however, lingered for a minute, looking at the Gangrel with a look that said several things all at once, but nothing was articulated out loud.

Alex yanked the humans to their feet, ignoring their gasps and girly screams of protest. Holding each in an iron strong grip, he bit down at their necks, ignoring any niceties or attempts to make this a better experience for them. He was hungry, pissed, half naked, and still covered in Vaseline. He wasn't in the mood for niceties.

While he was careful to make sure that he didn't drain them, Alex wasn't too concerned if they were a bit roughed up. By the time he was finished with them, their memories were wiped and his hunger was abated; both survivors of the cult of hooligans were unconscious. He let them go, allowing them to hit the ground with a solid thump.

"By the way, I hope Liverpool gets their asses kicked," Alex hissed and kicked both humans in their stomachs. While he was careful to not drive his booted foot through their bodies and out their backs, he was satisfied to hear them gasp in pain. It was petty, but he had had a pretty shitty (no pun intended) night. He deserved some sort of payback.

_XanderXanderXander_

Once he was done, Alex calmly walked out of the alley, wiping his mouth, careful to make sure that no traces of blood were visible. While they knew that he wasn't sweet, gentle Xander anymore, he didn't want them to see how inhuman he had become. He didn't want to deal with the silent accusations and Angel's smug looks of superiority and satisfaction. After all, he had done nothing but deride Angel for being a vampire back in high school, and at this point it would definitely be a case of the pot rightfully calling the kettle black.

"Hey," Alex said, feeling a bit awkward.

"Xander," Cordelia said as she lounged against the front bumper of Angel's car which was parked down the deserted street where they had left it earlier that night. She looked dirty and tired, but relatively okay. "Are you done with the grrr," she said, making a face and using hooked fingers to represent fangs.

Alex just stood there and looked at her, completely taken aback by what she had just said. Never had he expected anyone ask him about his feeding habits like that. Despite everything that he had seen and done in the past year, plus his time on the Hellmouth helping the Slayer out in her fight against the things that go bump in the night, that was something that left him a bit stunned.

Alex sighed. "Yeah. I'm done."

"Good, because I don't know about you all, but I need a shower and I think the only way I'm ever going to get the smell out of my clothes is to burn them. Xander, are you up for a little bonfire later? God, this is so foul and I just bought this shirt!" she griped. "Am I going to get compensated for my shirt being ruined like this? This is so unfair."

"No," Wesley called out, looking a might bit disturbed by the night's events.

"What about the humans? Are they alive?" Angel asked busy wiping the Vaseline his torso off with an old towel that he had found in the trunk of his car.

"They're fine. I might have scrambled their brains just a bit when I made them forget tonight, but they're relatively okay. We might want to get out of here though. I can hear the fire engines coming," Alex suggested to the others.

Angel threw the towel at the Gangrel. "Don't get that slime on the upholstery please. I like to keep the car clean."

Alex snatched the now dirty material out of the air and did his best to wipe the jelly off his chest and back as he climbed into the car with the others.

Not long after their escape from the area, the fire department arrived to find the building in flames. Once they were able to get the blaze under control, the fire fighters found the remains of several humans in the burnt out building, along with the two survivors out in the alleyway. The one thing that puzzled the firefighters was the odd lumps of carbon that were scattered among the charred remains of the humans. It was almost as if something like a large cow had blown up and the remains had been splattered across the room before they had been completely scorched by the fire. Then there was the smell – it smelled like an outhouse located in the seventh of hell, which lingered and overwhelmed any other sort of smell possible.

_XanderXanderXander_

Back at the hotel, Alex grabbed his bag out of his rental car and joined the gang inside. Angel pointed him towards a room with a working shower and tossed him a bar of soap.

"Can I expect room service and a mint on my pillow afterwards, a turn down maybe?" Alex asked.

Angel's response was to throw a clean towel at Alex's head.

After forty minutes of intense scrubbing and lots of hot water (unaware that the others heard his rendition of The Rocky Horror Picture Show's "Sweet Transvestite" much to their amusement – though Cordelia threatened everyone's live if they were to mention it to him – she said that they owed Xander big time and making fun of his singing was not the way to pay back the debt they owed him), Alex came down the stairs, dressed in a clean pair of jeans and t-shirt. He stood there on the landing, watching the others interact with each other. Cordelia, Gunn, and Wesley sat there on a couch, with Angel hovering near-by. They all were relaxed, joking and laughing with each other. Also, he noted, they were all cleaned up, no longer looking like refuges from the garbage dump.

Looking at them, using an ability that Daedelus was helping him to develop, Alex was able to see how their auras, even Angel (he had a soul after all) had one, were all intertwined with one another. While their own auras were twisted around others, Alex was able to see which aura belong to which person. Cordelia's was primarily orange and red, indicating that despite her social, outgoing nature she was experiencing great pain. He made a mental note to ask her about it when they got some private time. With Wesley, his was a deep blue, indicating a sense of deeply felt loneliness. Gunn's aura was a muddy yellow, but since he didn't know the man at all, Alex didn't even begin to try to understand why his aura was the way it was.

Finally he looked at Angel's aura. Predictably it was black, but with holes in it. Usually one associated a black or grey aura with the idea of death. Granted the Primordial was actually dead, Alex didn't think the black halo he saw was due to Angel's status among the living. Rather, he quietly analyzed, it came from the emotional imbalance caused by the war created by the presence of a demon and a human soul. The holes were an indication of great pain and suffering and that there was a need for healing.

What he also noted, through the twining and twisting of the energy clouds that tied everyone together, that there was a place between Gunn and Wesley that seemed empty, as if the person that was supposed to be there was missing or not yet arrived. Alex wondered who it was that was absent from the group, knowing instinctively that it was not him. He also noted that because the group was so joined on a spiritual and emotional level that if one of them were to fall, the others would soon follow.

While he stood there, mussing over the ins and outs of how the group was connected, watching from afar, Angel finally looked up, noticing the young Gangrel standing there watching them.

The Primordial vampire said something to the group who in turn turned to look at him, watching him carefully.

Finally, after a long pause of everyone watching everyone else Cordelia spoke up. "Get down here already. Quit being such a dork."

Alex gave a half-hearted grin and ambled down the stairs and joined the others in the foyer area.

Wes offered him a bottle of Fat Tire beer as he passed by. "Or would you prefer something else?" the ex-Watcher asked, his voice slightly unsteady as he said that last bit, clearly uncomfortable with the idea that Xander now drank blood.

"Nope, I'm good," Alex said. _The jackass hooligans filled me up just fine_, he thought to himself, a wicked smile playing across his face. Despite how retarded the mega fans had been; they had sated his Hunger and then some.

He dropped on to a vacant couch across from the three humans and let his head loll back slightly, occasionally taking a sip out of his bottle of beer. It had been a bizarre and exhausting night and he was a bit tuckered out.

"So do you guys do this kind of thing every day?" he asked, staring up at the art deco ceiling.

"Only on days that end in y it seems," Gunn replied, looking at the youthful looking vampire across from him. He didn't know much about the guy, save for a few stray comments that Cordelia had made about her life in Sunnydale. What little he knew about Xander Harris made him expect some dork of a white dude that could debate who would win in a fight between Thor and Superman and not do much else. Instead, this was a guy, vampire, whatever he wanted to call himself, that could kick some serious ass and had some powerful mojo in his possession. Apparently the guy also had a soul and was not like Angel's kind. A part of him wondered what it would take to convince the guy to stay on and help out.

"No," Alex said, not bothering to look at the human.

"No what?" Gunn asked, hostility in his voice, not liking the idea that this stranger was reading his mind.

"I wasn't reading your thoughts. You asked out loud if I would want to stay here in LA and I said no. I have a life in San Francisco, a girlfriend, a job, I hunt Angel's soulless kind on the side, and if I were to stay down here, I'd have to present myself to the Prince of the city and I couldn't help you guys. I'm down here kind of illegally," he said, recalling the traditions that he had been forced to memorize. "Seriously, you need to keep the internal monologue internal."

"But you could get a job down here and your girlfriend could come too. We wouldn't tell anyone if you were here," Cordelia pressed.

"It's not that simple. Someone would eventually notice an unauthorized Gangrel living here in LA. Unwanted attention towards you guys would happen and there would be nothing I could do about it since I would probably be dead too. Also, I am an enforcer for the Prince in San Francisco. The Prince in LA does not like Luna for many reasons and Cyrus' dislike is extended to those that have proclaimed their allegiance to Luna. Enforcers enforce the rules of the Masquerade, hence the word enforcer. How would it look if I blatantly broke the rules? I would have some splanin' to do as they ordered a Blood Hunt on my ass. Being with you guys and actively helping your cause would get me in massive trouble with my kind, not to mention that it would get us both killed. Besides, I don't belong here. This is your guys' gig. I have mine and it makes me pretty happy," Alex explained.

"Your kind," Wesley picked up on that phrase. "You really aren't human are you?"

"No I'm not Wes. I'm Kindred, but I like to think that I still have a hold on my humanity. Besides, you don't need me. As long as you guys stay on track and a certain Dead Boy keeps it in his pants, you belong fighting the good fight," he finished, smiling slightly.

"So how cool is it that you can do magic now?" Cordelia asked. "Can you change into mist and walk through time?"

The others just looked at her.

"What," she asked shrugging her shoulders. "I'm fishing for answers I know you all are dying to hear."

Alex laughed. "Can't do the mist thing and no to the time travel Cordy."

"I ran into some Kindred years before I got my soul back. I don't know what kind they were, but I remember that they could turn into animals."

The Gangrel gave the Primordial a tight smile. "Some can do that some can't. Not all Kindred have the same disciplines."

"Well, can you do that?" Cordelia pressed, her dark eyes sparkling with excitement.

Alex sighed. "Yes."

"Can we see?" the seer asked.

"No."

"Why not?"

"Because I said no," Alex said with finality. He didn't want to be a trick pony for others' amusement.

They talked further into the night, mostly rehashing the good old days of Sunnydale and what the LA gang had been up to lately. Alex pretty much refused to go into too much detail about his new life. They knew the basics; they didn't need the unabridged version. It was better for them, better for their safety.

Eventually the humans fell asleep, passed out on the couch, leaving Angel and Alex to themselves.

Angel jerked his head to the side, indicating that they should go out to the courtyard so they wouldn't disturb the exhausted people on the couch.

Alex shrugged, picked up his bottle and followed the Primordial out the door.

Once outside, Alex sat down on one of the concrete benches while Angel lounged by the inoperative fountain. "What's up Angel," he asked, dropping all spiteful jibes and name calling.

"Are you okay?" he asked the young man.

"I'm okay," Alex shrugged. "Once I fed, the Hunger was sated. That fire took a lot out of me."

"Do you have any idea how ironic it is for a vampire to be able to control fire? Even though I don't know much about your kind, I am sure fire is just as deadly for you as it is for me," Angel said with exasperation in his voice.

"Yeah, it's been pointed out to me several times by others. I don't like to use it too much because it drains me and I get Hungry. Also, I don't like relying on magic. If I can do it with my two hands, so much the better," the Gangrel explained, talking to the demonic vampire with a soul as if they were old friends. "However, this time we needed a little extra firepower – no pun intended."

"I never would have thought that you of all people would do this to themselves," Angel said.

"I hated being in Sunnydale. I was so sick of the others and their attitude issues. Plus, every time I thought about my future in Sunnydale, it was just one big black hole. I couldn't see a future for me there," he clarified. "I went to San Francisco and met this girl by chance. I was able to see a future with her and then I found out about Kindred. I knew that I had found a home."

"This girl, Emily, she's like you isn't she?"

"Yeah, she is. Thanks to her, I've made some really good friends, got away from a soul sucking gateway to hell, and I have my own life. I have a few regrets, but over-all, I am happy with how my life is going. If I had stayed on the Hellmouth, I would have ended up dead – thanks to either one of Buffy's stupid plans or some fuck that wanted to use me to get to the Slayer and don't look at me like that. Buffy's no saint and you know that. Her plans got us into more trouble than not."

Angel shrugged, mentally agreeing with the Gangrel but refused to admit out loud that his true love was a flawed being. He had put the blonde slayer up on a high pedestal and could not bear the thought of having to take her down from her majestic perch.

"I hope you find all what you are looking for Xander and you don't become what you hate the most about my kind – soulless, animalistic, killers," Angel said, sighing.

"Thank you," Alex said, dropping the pissy, sarcastic act. It wasn't necessary anymore.

"You know," Angel began. "When I was a kid we had this maid who was as Irish as they came. She would always entertain us kids with stories about the sidhe and give us her daily dosage of wisdom through Irish blessings and proverbs. There is one I think is appropriate for you: May the road rise to meet you, may the wind be always at your back, may the sun shine warm upon your face, the rains fall soft upon your fields and, until we meet again, may God hold you in the palm of His hand. I wish you the best of luck Xander."

"Same to you," Alex said and extended his hand, offering it in friendship and understanding. While they might be two very separate and different types of vampires, they understood each other – finally.

"Oh, by the way," Angel suddenly said, a shit-eating grin spread across his face. "I never heard such a horrible rendition of "Sweet Transvestite." You really can't sing for shit, but your choice was classic. You can be assured that you've managed to put a big ole smile on my face that will last well into the next two centuries," the Primordial laughed.

"Fuck," Alex said, his face going red.

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A/N: Well, what do you think? Crap or not? Hit the shiny review button and let me know what you think.

I will admit to listening to The Rocky Horror Picture Show soundtrack lately. I do the Time Warp with absolutely no shame and you are jealous. Admit it.

I think there is one more chapter in this story. Its a short story, but it was never meant to be a long one.


	8. Chapter 8

Disclaimer: I don't own BTVS, Angel, or Kindred the Embraced. If I did, I wouldn't be freaking out over my light bill every month. I promise to return all recognizable characters to their rightful owners when I am done, though they will be a bit scuffed. Any characters you do not readily recognize are of my creation and I can abuse them as I feel fit.

Warning: Potty language, violence, and bad attitudes

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Chapter 8

It was four in the afternoon and Alex knew that he had to get a move on. His flight was leaving at 7:00pm and he needed to get going. It would take him around forty-five minutes at the least to get to the airport, and then God knows how long it would take for him to make his way past airport security.

Alex hefted his bag over his shoulder. He had spent the night and day at the hotel, hanging out with the AI gang. By the time they had all crashed from their night from hell, it seemed pointless for him to go find a hotel to stay at by the time their hellacious night had ground to a close. So instead he spent time with the gang, hanging out, watching them do what they did to help in the fight against evil and tyranny in the world.

Mostly he watched the humans nurse their massive hangovers.

Luckily he didn't have to ask the Primordial if he had a pint or two of blood lying around. The hooligans had filled him up earlier in the day, fortifying him against the sun's deadly rays.

"Hey Dead Boy!" he called out at one point. "Look at me! I'm in the sun, now I'm not. Oh wait, I'm back in the sun and see how cool it is that I'm not going up in flames. Bet you're jealous, huh?" Alex laughed at the look of absolute sure-as-shit pissed-off look that was emanating from the vampire as he danced in and out of a sunny spot on the floor. "I'm in, I'm out, I'm in, I'm out," he said in a laughing, mocking tone.

"Xander," Wes called out from behind the front desk, his voice sounding strained. "Could you please shut the hell up? My head is killing me and your irritating sing-song voice isn't helping. Stop teasing Angel." _Bloody blood-sucker_, he though irritably.

Alex gave Wesley a dirty look and stuck his tongue out at the former Watcher in a very churlish manner.

"I saw that," Wesley sniped, glaring at the Gangrel, contemplating shooting the younger man for irritating him with his happy, non-hung over, attitude.

By the time four o'clock rolled around, the humans were feeling a bit more human, though they were all swearing that they wouldn't drink that much in such a short time again, if ever.

Alex and Gunn did some fancy hand-shake thing. Since they didn't know each other very well, their good-byes had been pretty quick and straightforward.

Despite everything that the Gangrel had done to save the group's collective asses, there was a part of Gunn that did not trust the vampire. He was a vampire, despite the fancy title and powers, and in Gunn's book, vampires could not be fully trusted.

Alex, for his part, did not trust Gunn that much either. While he trusted the human to keep things on the QT about the Kindred and his place within their secret society, he knew that everything the human looked at him, he thought about staking him. It wasn't a psychic thing really. It was more of Alex reading Gunn's facial and body language, knowing that the scowl on his face and the twitching hand that was reaching for a weapon was the man's response to the supernatural. While he respected Gunn's reaction to him and even understood it, Alex was glad to be away from the man.

Wesley however was a bit different. The ex-Watcher had proved that he was no longer the fop that he had been back in Sunnydale. The man was coming into his own, sure and strong in his beliefs and convictions. Alex found himself wondering briefly what clan Wesley Windham-Price would be best suited towards if he were embraced.

They shook hands and made with the small talk, offering encouragement and best wishes for each other.

With Cordelia, Alex found himself wrapped up in a hug, enjoying the feeling of warmth and happiness that was in the embrace.

"You take care of yourself Doofus," the former beauty queen advised her ex-boyfriend.

"The same to you Queen C," Alex responded.

"And you take care of that girlfriend of yours," she added, looking a bit sad at that, thinking back to the time they had dated.

Alex smiled. "I will and just so you know," he said and then dropped his voice to the point it was only a whisper. "I love her very much, but know that you were and always will be my first love. Thank you Cordy."

"Jerk," she said, smiling, wiping away a stray tear or two. She playfully smacked her friend. "Have a good life and sorry about not getting the vision right."

The Gangrel shrugged. "Somehow I always get dragged into the wackiest of situations. I think it's the Powers' way of keeping me on my toes. And besides, it's not like a clown, a circular saw, and a jar of little pickles were involved. That would have been just gross and disturbing and would have left me pissed for weeks. This was small fries compared to that."

"You're a disturbing person Xander," Cordelia said, giving an involuntary shudder due to the mental picture that was conjured from that image. After that, she stepped back, allowing Alex to face the last person in the room.

"Angel," Alex said.

"Xander," Angel said.

"I go by Alex," Alex replied. "Take care of yourself Dead Boy."

"You too Fang Boy, have fun hanging out with your pretty boy vamps up in San Francisco," the Primordial snarked, giving the younger vampire a half grin. "Enjoy the rest of your blood sucking life Kindred."

"Oh, the witty jabs you throw at me Captain Forehead," Alex smirked. "You have fun slurping down that crap you call blood. Seriously, pig blood? Thank God you're not Jewish." Alex flashed the older vampire a wicked smile. "I'll think of you tonight when I'm drinking the real stuff from the source and enjoy every second of it," he whispered; there was no need to freak out the others. "I'm mean really, nothing beats fresh human blood."

"Asshole," Angel muttered, glaring at the former Sunnydale resident. "Don't you have a flight or something to catch?"

"Yeah, I do. Take care guys and please destroy that file as soon as you can," Alex said, dropping his wise-ass personae for bit. "It won't be good if someone finds out that you have info on a member of the Kindred."

"We will and thanks," Angel said, understanding that despite how much Xander loved to continuously bust his chops, the young man was sincere in his plead for them to dispose of the file as quickly as possible. He did care about what could happen to them, despite the non-serious attitude he chose to show to the world at large.

With that, Alex walked out of the hotel and headed back to his life in San Francisco.

The end for now…

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A/N: Well, what do you think? Crap or not? Hit the shiny review button and let me know.

Well, this is it for now. I wanted to add in a kind of sweet moment with Cordelia that I left out in the last chapter and I had to have a moment of Alex mocking Angel with the 'I can be in the sun and you can't' for my not too silent partner-in-crime, Lorilei. I think I have an idea or two that is more definite that what I had before about a NLTZ 4. I need to outline it and flesh it out a bit more. Of course there is always that pesky SG1 story that is demanding attention. Yes Lorilei, you will have your nekked spacemonkey soon.

I would like to thank you for reading my stuff. I know I always say it, but I do appreciate you taking the time to do so. Another thank you goes out to those of you that put this story on their lists. I would also like to thank the reading audience for not calling the mental health professionals on me or telling my family that I am a danger to myself and others, and (Lorlei) for not taking away my season tickets and sending me occasional moments of inspiration and motivation. Finally, I would like to thank the following people that have dropped me a review and have offered word of encouragement and critique: Dragonelf, Bumpkin, Rebelgirl, mithrilandtj, Infinix, Thewander, Purrfus, Dargos, RafMereC, Lorilei, TAO (well, where in the hell is it?), Slytherinwithwings, Hawklan, EddieWitcher, LordCorwin, Darkbear, Kirallie, Louvil, Dracowar, and Toowhiteprincess. Thank you to all from the bottom of my heart! Take care and have a wonderful and blessed day to all and a happy Thanksgiving!


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